VIRGIN Atlantic will step up the pressure on old foe British Airways today when it launches its first direct service between Manchester and Las Vegas.

The airline, founded by Sir Richard Branson, currently operates a daily service between London Gatwick and Las Vegas.

The two additional Manchester flights will see an extra 40,000 passengers flying to the city, which is a 30 per cent increase in Virgin’s capacity to Las Vegas.

BA flies daily to the city from Heathrow. From June it is putting a Boeing 747 on the route, increasing capacity and giving customers the option of flying first class.

Virgin Atlantic carries about 250,000 passengers a year to Las Vegas. Cathy Tull, senior vice-president of marketing for the Las Vegas Convention and Visitor’s Authority said: “We anticipate this new flight will contribute more than $44 million (£27.5 million) annually towards our economy.”

Julie Southern, Virgin Atlantic’s chief commercial officer, said: “This will be our first destination to the west coast of America from Manchester. Advance sales of this new route have been incredibly strong.”